Falcon retains interest in Beetaloo Permits, Northern Australia

Falcon Oil & Gas Ltd. (TSX: V.FO) said that Hess Australia (Beetaloo) Pty Ltd (Hess) did not elect to commit to drilling the five wells required to earn their interest in the Beetaloo permits by the agreed deadline of 10:00 pm June 28.

Falcon Australia, Falcon's 72.7% owned subsidiary, is the registered holder of four exploration permits covering approximately 7 million acres in the Beetaloo Basin, a sparsely populated area of the Northern Territory.

According to the Falcon press release, in accordance with the Participation Agreement dated April 28, 2011, as amended on the August 2, 2012, which granted Hess the first extension, failure to elect on time means that Hess forfeits its right to earn 62.5% in three of the Beetaloo permits.

A late request by Hess to defer the election date again was unanimously rejected by Falcon's Board.

Falcon is an international oil and gas company engaged in the acquisition, exploration and development of conventional and unconventional oil and gas assets, with the current portfolio spread between Australia, South Africa and Hungary.